Radiation detectors serve for detecting ionizing radiation, such as e.g., beta radiation or gamma radiation.
Semiconductor-based radiation detectors include a semiconductor body with two semiconductor zones which are doped complementarily to one another and which form a pn junction. During operation of the radiation detector, the pn junction is reverse-biased by an electrical voltage being applied to the semiconductor zones by using connection electrodes. This results in an electric field within the semiconductor body. If ionizing radiation enters into the semiconductor body during the operation of the radiation detector, then charge carriers are generated which, owing to the electric field, generate a current pulse that can be measured between the connection electrodes.